My Favorite MCU Heroes

Happy weekend, readers! In light of the premier of The Avengers: Infinity War and our recent Marvel Cinematic Universe Rewatch Series, I’ve found myself thinking about the different characters in the MCU. Which are my favorites and why? Since I have a short break at work today, I decided to put together a quick post to answer my own questions. Here are my top three favorite characters in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

**Note: I have seen The Avengers: Infinity War and this post will not contain any spoilers for the movie.**

Doctor Strange

“I need more power. I want to be able to move worlds and shake them to their foundations. I want enough power in my hands to tear planets from the heavens and place them in a new sky.” –Doctor Strange

No, he’s not one of my favorites because Benedict Cumberbatch plays him. Well, maybe a little. I like the character of Doctor Strange because he doesn’t necessarily fit in or play well with others. He will sometimes work with super people, like The Avengers and The X-Men but the Sorcerer Supreme follows his own set of rules and his own agenda.

Doctor Strange is also a hero with baggage. He didn’t originally pursue his powers for the purposes of protecting the world from cosmic threats, but instead to heal himself and regain his former renown. Throughout his journey to seek The Ancient One, as well as during his training, he has a change of heart but still struggles with decisions from his past. I feel that the inherent struggles are both human and relatable. Despite the shift in moral compass and the new found power though, he retains a certain clinical logic, a ruthlessness even, that lets the world know he will do whatever he must for what he believes to be the greater good.

Following the theme of magic and mysticism, up next on my short list is Wanda Maximoff, also known as the Scarlet Witch. Now I admit, I am not the greatest reader of comics and as such am not intimately familiar with origin stories and alternate universes outside of the MCU. I’m letting you know that fact so you’re not surprised when I say that before The Avengers: Age of Ultron, I had never heard of Scarlet Witch.

The MCU wiki explains that Wanda and her brother Pietro (Quick Silver) grew up as orphans in Sokovia. After witnessing the awful conditions in their homeland, they agreed to undergo experiments with Hydra, granting them both super powers. Once Hydra fell, Wanda and Pietro joined with Ultron to take out Tony Stark and then enter stage left, Age of Ultron. My understanding is this origin story differs from that of the comics but we likely will not see any cohesion between the two universes until the rights between Fox and Disney are finally settled.

I like the Scarlet Witch because she is not inherently a hero. She is mistrustful, hateful and focused only on the survival of her and her brother. Regardless of the origin story you prefer, she always makes her way to the side of good though. She’s also incredibly powerful.

Thor

“Your ancestors called it magic… and you call it science. Well I come from a place where they’re one and the same thing.” – Thor

What to say about Thor? He’s from Asgard, God of Thunder, wields the legendary Mjolnir and, in the MCU, gets a little closer to Natalie Portman than is strictly necessary. All joking aside (I wasn’t joking. Stay away from her man.), the culture of the vikings has always fascinated me and the pagan gods they worshiped are no exception. The idea that the mighty Thor is flying around Midgard in my reality, even if it’s just on the big screen, makes me childishly excited.

My fascination with the denizens of Asgard aside, I really enjoy watching Tom Hiddleston’s Loki. Unlike with Doctor Strange and Benedict Cumberbatch (okay, mostly unlike with him), I am putting Loki on this list solely because Tom Hiddleston is a brilliant actor who manages to take over every scene his character is in. His monologue still gives me goose bumps.

Who are your favorite characters from the MCU and if you’ve seen The Avengers: Infinity, did that change after the movie? Let me know in the comments below!

I recently underwent a journey to watch every Marvel movie in preparation for Infinity War(having seen only one or two of them), so seeing this sort of content on your blog was a pleasant surprise.

Seeing Doctor Strange be among those favorites you mentioned was also a pleasant surprise. People like to dismiss him as just being magic Iron Man, but come on… Tony Stark is often cited as the most well-written Marvel character. Take that character, add fantastic magic powers that allow for action scenes that are actually cool, and you’ve got an objectively superior hero!

I’m glad to hear you enjoyed the look back. With events fresh in my mind, the project helped me enjoy Infinity War more than I think I would have.

And I concur! Dr. Strange was such a great addition to the MCU becayse as a character he’s against the grain of what you’ve come to expect from everyday heros and works as a great contrast to the aforementioned Tony Stark.